BaraNoMori asked:
I experience hypoglycemia commonly. Most often it is reactive, but I also experience fasting hypoglycemia as well. It is a stand-alone condition, as I am not diabetic.
My question is this.. what can I do with my diet to make the symptoms of tiredness less crippling? As it stands.. after eating a meal, I can barely stay awake for the next two hours or so. Usually when the tiredness sets in I take a few glucose tablets to stabalize my sugar, but I know that is probably not the best to do. I think I need to change my diet so that I have less of an upward spike (and therefore less of the resulting crash). The problem is, it seems like the only thing I crave is carbohydrates and sugars. Is my body just producing a lot of insulin to make up for the carbs and sugars? What are the best foods to choose? Any help would be great.
3 replies on “hypoglycemia diet?”
the thing is, maybe you eat too much at a given time. simple sugars will make your blood glucose shoot up. so what you do is choose complex carbs like bread or veggies. then plan your meal in 2-3 hours intervention. that way, you don’t run out of glucose. eat small frequent meals rich with complex carbs. if you still experience hypoglycemia, consult an endocrinologist.
It amazes me how little people…even many doctors…know about hypoglycemia. It’s a very serious disorder, and not enough is made known about it. If it isn’t controlled it can cause so many health problems, not to mention depression, anger flair ups, low energy levels………..the list goes on and on. And it usually leads into diabetes if not controlled. The good thing is that it is completely controllable by diet.
You need to stay away from simple carbohydrates such as sugar and white flour. Eat proteins such as meat and cheese, and complex carbs such as vegetables and whole grains. Eat small meals and healthy snacks every two hours. Also stay away from caffeine. It will also greatly affect your blood sugar levels.
It’s not an easy diet, especially when we hypoglycemics crave all those sweets and simple carbs that turn into sugar in our bodies. But if you get strict with it you will feel SO MUCH BETTER. It will be well worth it. And you will even find that after awhile you won’t crave those carbs and sugars.
And yes, what happens is when you eat sugar your pancreas over reacts and puts out too much insulin, which causes your blood sugar to drop way too low.
hypoglycemia basically is low blood sugar to much insulin, but you know that already.
I too am hypoglycemic and my doctor told me that instead of eating 3 “normal” meals a day, eat 6 small meals instead. So I eat breakfast (usually a bowl of cereal & a glass of milk) when I get up…then 3 hrs later, I’ll have something like a granola bar or piece of fruit, 3 hrs later its lunch (usually a sandwich with sliced meat or sometimes I’ll fix a small amount of pasta), again 3 hrs later I’m having another snack, then 3 hrs after its dinner time which I have a meat & 2 veg meal, and you guessed it 3 hrs later I might have another granola bar or a couple cookies to get my sugar fix. Don’t stay away from candy…just eat it in moderation. Believe me, if I couldn’t have chocolate I’d go nuts, but I don’t go crazy with it, and sometimes I’ll have a couple pieces of chocolate for my last snack before bed. If you notice that your sugar level has really dropped (cold sweats, funny feeling all over) drink 6-8 oz of orange juice with 2 teaspoons of sugar in it, or eat a tablespoon heaping full of peanut butter…it works everytime! Bananas, nuts (especially peanuts) are good snacks for when you feel you’ve hit bottom and need a boost of energy, as well as apples. Watch your veggies as some contain more sugar then others. Keep a food diary on what you eat and how you react to it…that way you’ll know what is “good” and what is “bad”. Oh and another thing I’ve found that works is downing a can of Mt Dew…I use this more then orange juice w/sugar. If you maintain your diet and not eat 3 “large” meals but rather 3 “small” meals with 3 “snack meals” you won’t worry about weight gain either…I was worried that I’d gain like crazy.